1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an interactive training system utilizing information recording medium such as Laser Disk (LD) and training material used in combination with the training system.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Recently, electrical publishing utilizing optical information recording medium such as CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), CD-I (Compact Disk Interactive) or video disk including LD (Laser Disk) is put into practice. Encyclopedia, dictionary, telephone directory, catalog and various kinds of training materials are known as examples of electrical publication. Contents of electrical publication is read out and displayed on a display by a search system (player) for exclusive use, and necessary information is output in a form of sound and/or picture in response to user's instruction.
In a known video disk search system, user instructs operation commands or information selection commands to the system in various way, and a system utilizing bar code input system is proposed in view of convenience in operation. In connection with such a bar code system, inventors of the present invention have proposed a video disk search system disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 62-204675 and controlling methods for controlling apparatus for reproducing information recording medium disclosed in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publications No. 63-195862, No. 63-195863 and No. 63-195864. In addition, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,481,412 and 4,329,684 disclose a bar code input system, and U.S. Pat. No. 4,333,152 and Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication No. 3-116274 disclose techniques of searching and selecting pictures.
The documents referred above disclose systems in which user selects information or operation using a bar code input system, human voice or light pen, etc., and it is mentioned that these systems are distinctive or characteristic in their "interactive" operation. However, in these systems, interaction between user and system is one-to-one correspondence. Namely, system performs one operation in response to one instruction given by user, and when the operation is executed the system becomes waiting status waiting for another instruction. According to these systems, picture information is composed of main picture information and supplemental picture information, and each of them are composed of fragmentary pictures. In many cases, main picture information merely functions as list or table of contents of supplemental pictures. In operation, user sees main picture information which provides a table of contents information of supplemental picture information, and merely selects one of supplemental pictures. When user selects one of pictures, corresponding fragmentary picture appears. Then, the system becomes status of waiting for another selection and do nothing until user gives another instruction. When user selects another picture, corresponding picture appears. In this manner, user selects one picture information, and one fragmentary picture appears in response. In this view, although such a system is mentioned as "interactive", operations of the system are all fragmentary or scrappy. In other words, such a system is nothing more than a mere picture selection system selecting one of fragmentary pictures one after another.